Provinces merging. Clubs dropping like flies. Last-minute rebrands and relocations.
The 2025/26 V.League 2 season is turning into one of the most chaotic, drama-filled campaigns Vietnamese football has ever seen.
In 2025, the Vietnamese government began an ambitious plan to merge a number of provinces, reducing the country’s 63 provinces to just 34. The move was aimed at cutting bureaucratic inefficiencies and streamlining administration — but it also sent shockwaves through the footballing landscape. While V.League 1 saw its share of changes, the second-tier V.League 2 became the true epicenter of upheaval.
With Ba Ria-Vung Tau Province absorbed into Ho Chi Minh City, local club Ba Ria-Vung Tau FC took on the mantle of Ho Chi Minh City FC, following the top-flight club’s rebrand into Cong An Ho Chi Minh City (CAHCMC). The new HCMC FC unveiled a crest blending their old identity with BRVT’s, adopted red-and-white colors, and remained an affiliate club — meaning CAHCMC’s young players will still develop down by the beaches of Vung Tau. The team will continue to play its matches at Ba Ria Stadium, 75 km away from downtown Saigon.
The newly formed Dong Nai Province – which has absorbed its neighbor Binh Phuoc Province – was allowed only one professional team, and the historic Dong Nai FC were unceremoniously dissolved in favor of the better-funded Truong Tuoi Binh Phuoc, who rebranded as Truong Tuoi Dong Nai. Similarly, once Quang Nam Province was incorporated into Da Nang Province, the 2017 V.League 1 champions Quang Nam FC were shut down, leaving SHB Da Nang as the province’s sole representative.
Despite their new name, Truong Tuoi Dong Nai will remain in Binh Phuoc for now but plan to move to Bien Hoa once a new stadium is ready. Meanwhile, Quy Nhon Binh Dinh rebranded as Quy Nhon United following the dissolution of Binh Dinh Province and its merger with Gia Lai, while Long An FC retained their identity despite their province’s absorption into Tay Ninh.
Ho Chi Minh City Youth FC also rebranded into Thanh Nien Ho Chi Minh. This change was unrelated to the provincial mergers, but the club still faces a unique situation: it serves as a feeder team for two different top-flight outfits, Ninh Binh FC and Hoang Anh Gia Lai — both owned by LPBank — who send players to develop there.
Quang Nam’s disappearance opened a spot in the V.League 1, which was taken by last season’s third-placed PVF-CAND after Truong Tuoi Dong Nai declined promotion. That left a vacancy in V.League 2, which was eventually filled by PVF-CAND’s B team after Lam Dong FC also refused promotion. The catch? PVF-CAND B cannot be promoted, making their presence in the second tier somewhat of a formality.
And then came the real chaos.
Less than two weeks before kickoff, Hoa Binh FC — whose province was merged with Phu Tho — announced they would rebrand as Phu Tho FC, taking on the name of a disgraced third-tier club disqualified for match-fixing last season. But within 48 hours, the new “Phu Tho FC” shockingly withdrew from the league altogether after their main sponsor abruptly pulled out.
Just when it seemed things couldn’t get any stranger, they did.
Eight days before the season opener, Ho Chi Minh City-based Gia Dinh FC were suddenly bought out by the powerful Xuan Thien Group, owners of reigning V.League 1 champions Thep Xanh Nam Dinh. The club relocated to Phu Tho, rebranded as Xuan Thien Phu Tho, adopted Nam Dinh’s white-and-blue colors, and became an official feeder team. The timing was jaw-dropping: Gia Dinh had already finalized their coaching staff and unveiled their new kits, only for the new owners to wipe the slate clean, fire everyone connected to the old regime, and impose a Nam Dinh-flavored identity.
The rebrand was so rushed that Xuan Thien Phu Tho played their first match literally wearing Nam Dinh’s AFC Champions League Two shirts, with their crest hastily slapped over Nam Dinh’s circular badge.
Elsewhere, Khatoco Khanh Hoa made a last-minute U-turn on their plan to withdraw, Bac Ninh FC — guided by former Vietnam national team coach Park Hang-seo as an advisor — made their eagerly awaited second-tier debut, and Quang Ninh Province made a triumphant return to professional football with Quang Ninh FC, a squad led by ex-Than Quang Ninh stars Mac Hong Quan and Nghiem Xuan Tu.
And, in perhaps the quirkiest twist of all, Ho Chi Minh City-based Van Hien University FC became the first-ever university team to compete in V.League 2 — complete with a kit that is literally an inverted color scheme of Dong Thap FC, with whom they share a sponsor.
When the dust finally settles, the 2025/26 V.League 2 may go down as the most dramatic, unpredictable, and downright bizarre season in the history of Vietnamese football. One thing’s for sure: fans will be talking about this campaign for years to come.